


Pharaoh's Tomb

by Doctor_Discord



Series: The Ego Manor [167]
Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Adventure & Romance, Blood, Cute, Egypt, Oasis, Stargazing, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Wild animals, tombs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-01
Updated: 2020-03-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:01:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22972171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doctor_Discord/pseuds/Doctor_Discord
Summary: Illinois takes Eric on an Egyptian adventure.
Relationships: Illinois/Eric Derekson
Series: The Ego Manor [167]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1166384
Comments: 29
Kudos: 177





	1. Chapter 1

Eric bounced excitedly in his seat, face practically pressed directly against the glass of the plane window. He could hear Illinois chuckling beside him, and Eric just squeezed his hand, bouncing never ceasing. “ _Illi Illi Illi_ , look!”

“I see it, honey.”

Eric flushed at the pet name, and then his jaw was dropping with awe as the pyramids of Egypt came into view. He let go of Illinois’ hand just to press both of his own against the glass, staring with wide eyes. “ _Whoa_ …”

Eric was glued to the window as the plan descended into the city below, absolutely _fascinated_ with everything he saw. He’d never left the country before, and the city looked so _different_ from the one back home. Not to mention the sheer expanse of _desert_ he could see, nothing but sand in every direction. It was _beautiful_. He knew Illinois had been here before, but something told Eric he didn’t mind coming again.

They got through customs quickly enough, and though Eric _really_ wanted to hold Illinois’ hand, he knew it wasn’t the greatest idea in a country like Egypt. So, he settled for bouncing on the balls of his feet, gazing around with nothing but awe, even though they were still in the airport. Illinois was obviously finding more entertainment watching Eric than any of their surroundings, and Eric just beamed at him, _unbelievably_ excited. He was in _Egypt!_

“Illinois! You made it!”

They spun around to see a woman jogging towards them. She had short hair bleached incredibly blonde by the sun, and was wearing something similar to Illinois’ outfit. Illinois smiled, and the two hugged. “Amanda! It’s good to see you again!”

“It’s been too long! Since, what, Brazil?”

“No, I think it was Mexico!”

They finally pulled away from each other. Eric’s excitement had been subdued a little by the presence of another person and his resulting anxiety and shyness, and Amanda and Illinois’ interaction made him feel…Eric wasn’t a jealous person, but he felt…left out?

Amanda smiled, and she apparently just now noticed Eric. “Oh! Hello! And you are…?”

Illinois beamed, wrapping an arm around Eric’s waist, and tugged him closer. “Amanda, this is my boyfriend, Eric.”

Eric blushed _brilliantly_ at that word. _Boyfriend_. Illinois had only called him that a couple of times now, since they were still trying to hide their relationship from the others per Eric’s request (though the success was to be debated, especially _now_ ), and it never failed to get a reaction out of Eric. One Illinois found to be _adorable_.

Amanda laughed, holding out her hand, and Eric shyly shook it. “Well, Eric, it’s nice to meet you.” She raised an eyebrow, turning back to Illinois. “You honestly thought dragging your boyfriend out into the middle of the desert would be the ideal date?”

Illinois shrugged. “I though the location of the dog would be pretty cool, yeah.” He grinned. “Plus, not much else can beat cracking open an ancient Egyptian tomb for the first time.”

Amanda snorted. “Such a romantic,” she deadpanned, and Eric stifled a giggle. “Come on, I'll drive you to your hotel. You two have had a long light, you should rest up. We start early tomorrow.”

Amanda did indeed drive them to their hotel, a place only able to be described as _luxurious_ and _gorgeous_ , curtesy of Dark. Definitely more expensive than Illinois was used to, he said. But, despite how beautiful the room was, with an _amazing_ view of the pyramids, they stayed there all of five minutes to set down their bags before Illinois was taking Eric on a tour of Cairo. They got as close to the pyramids as the public was allowed, and the took _several_ pictures, which Eric happily texted to their big family group chat. But, it _was_ getting late, and jet lag was a bitch. So, after they ate in the hotel restaurant, they went up to their room and crashed, not even bothering to get under the covers of the bed (just one, _yeah_ , their secret wasn’t a secret anymore), just tangled in each other’s arms.

They were awoken the next morning by a pounding on their door. Illinois stirred first with a groan, pressing his face into the _very soft_ pillows. The pounding didn’t stop, and he slipped out of the bed, Eric whining in sleepy protest and weakly clinging to his shirt as a result. Illinois pressed a kiss to his forehead, and easily slipped free of Eric’s grasp, moving to open the door.

Amanda beamed at him, laughing at the glare he shot her. “Just came to wake you up, sleepyhead, you weren’t answering your phone. I’ll be down in the lobby.”

Illinois raised an eyebrow, glancing out the window. The sun was just barely beginning to rise. “Yeah yeah, we’ll be right down. Give us a minute.”

Amanda’s smile fell a little, and she glanced over Illinois’ shoulder, at Eric still asleep in the bed. “Are you sure you want to take him? What if he gets hurt?”

Illinois’ expression didn’t change. “He’ll be fine. He’s more resilient than he looks. And I’m not worried about any animals. He can hold his own.”

“Illinois –”

“ _Goodbye_ , Amanda. We’ll see you in the lobby.”

Illinois shut the door in her face, and turned back to the bed. He sat on the edge, shaking Eric’s shoulder gently. “Eric. Honey, wake up.”

Eric’s nose scrunched up, and he shifted a little. “ _Nooo_ …five more minutes…”

Illinois laughed a bit, smiling softly. Eric really was _adorable_. “Okay. Five minutes. But then, you’re waking up, got it?”

He got no reply back, just Eric’s face smoothing out once more with sleep.

Illinois took a quick shower, and when he got out, Eric was awake on his own, sitting up sleepily on the bed, glasses crooked on his nose. He took one look at Illinois, still wet from the shower, and _lit up_ bright red. He squeaked, flopping back on the bed, hiding his face with his hands. Illinois laughed, blushing a bit himself as he situated the towel around his waist. “What? I’m not _that_ pretty, am I?”

“ _Yes_.” Eric reply was muffled by his hands, but immediate, and Illinois’ own blush deepened.

Still, he smiled, and walked over, pulling Eric’s hands from his face and kissing him gently. “Go get ready, honey. Amanda’s in the lobby waiting for us.”

They got ready quick enough. Eric was still half asleep even after his shower, though, leaning against Illinois and holding his hand as they got in Amanda’s jeep. Illinois let Eric doze on his shoulder as they travelled through the desert, nothing but sand in every direction as Cairo and the pyramids disappeared behind them. But, an hour or so later, the dig site slowly began to come into view, and Illinois grinned, nudging Eric. “Eric, wake up!”

Eric shifted, groaning softly, and lifted his head, eyelids fluttering open. “…What…?”

Illinois pointed into the distance. “Look!”

The oasis was _massive_ , and _beautiful_ , a gorgeous splash of color and life against the bland tones of the sand. Eric sat up straighter, mouth falling open, and Illinois’ grin broadened, wrapping an arm around Eric’s shoulders. He’d kept the location of the dig a secret, wanting to surprise Eric with the beautiful oasis. And the look on Eric’s face, though sleepy, was _everything_ he’d been hoping for. He pressed a kiss to Eric’s hair, practically vibrating in his seat with excitement. “Isn’t it perfect?”

“Illi…” Eric turned to him, and a smile slowly spread across his face. “Illi, it’s _gorgeous!_ ”

They pulled up to the dig sight, a large swath of desert on the outskirts of the oasis. People milled about, a sizeable hole in the ground where the desert had been dog away. Tents were scattered, equipment surrounded the hole, and _God_ Illinois was like an excited puppy, his face lit up, and squeezing Eric’s hand tight.

Amanda laughed, shooting Eric an amused look. “You should’ve seen him when we found some old ruins in the Amazon, undiscovered. I thought he was going to pass out.”

Illinois immediately pouted, though his energy didn’t fade. “Hey! I was _not_ going to pass out! It was just _cool!_ ”

Amanda nodded, little smirk on her face. “Uh-huh, sure. Come on, Adventure Boy. I’ll show you what we have.”

She led them over to the hole, Illinois’ excitement almost immediately once again visible on his face. The hole had a rope railing around it, and when they peered into it, they could see the smooth roof of the tomb.

Illinois honest to God let out a high-pitched little shriek, flapping his hands excitedly. “ _Oh my God oh my God oh my God_ – how much longer till we can open it?!”

Eric was giggling, covering his mouth one hand as he watched Illinois fangirl, and Amanda snorted. “We have to find the entrance first, which is what we’re working on. We’ve found three of the edges, no sign of an entrance though. Of course it’s the last one we check. I say we should have it open by the time night hits.”

Illinois bounced on the balls of his feet, still flapping his hands. “What do you need us to do?”

Amanda gripped his shoulders, forcing him to still. “I _need_ you to calm down, Illinois. You’ve done your part. You found the damn thing! Now let _us_ unbury it. Go spend time with your boyfriend, explore that oasis.”

Illinois pouted. “Well now it just sounds like you’re trying to get rid of me.”

Amanda smiled, and patted his shoulder. “Because I am! I _know_ you, Illinois, you’ll less ‘help’ and more ‘stop everyone else from working by asking too many questions’. Relax. We got this. Here –” She tossed him the keys to her jeep. “Go have fun!”

Illinois’ pout deepened, but he turned around, walking back to the jeep. Eric followed, reaching for his hand again, and smiled up at him. Illinois squeezed his hand, and kissed his cheek, smiling a bit back. His face lit up again. “First one to spot an animal gets a point.”

Eric raised an eyebrow. “Why does it have to be a competition?”

Illinois unlocked the jeep, hopping into the driver’s side, and plopped his hat on Eric’s head. “Because it’s more fun that way! I bet we’ll find a snake the second we get close!”

Eric was slowly getting excited, too, and it wasn’t clear whether his flushed face was from the heat or Illinois giving him his hat. “You’re on!”


	2. Chapter 2

The oasis was bigger than thought. The foliage was so thick they couldn’t drive the jeep very deep into it, and had to walk. Illinois used his knife – _how_ he got that, his gun, _and_ whip on the plane remains a mystery to Eric – to help them make their way through. Eric was the first one to spot an animal, a little sand cat darting through the brush. Illinois had pouted about that, until he almost stepped on a snake. He’d _immediately_ picked the thing up, uncaring if it was venomous, holding it in a way he wouldn’t get bit either way. The snake was clearly _pissed_ , thrashing in Illinois’ hold, but they still marveled it for a bit before Illinois tossed it away.

When they found the water source of the oasis, they didn’t leave.

It was a _massive_ , _huge_ lake. They could just _barely_ see the opposite shore. They were quiet for a long time, sitting just on the edge of the sand, half-hidden by the plant life. They watched a variety of animals come to the lake to drink, both of them absolutely _enraptured_ by the wildlife. It was _beautiful_ , peaceful, birds singing in the trees, but other than that…it was perfectly quiet.

Until Illinois crept closer to study the tracks of some sort of dog that had just ran off, and Eric pushed him into the lake.

Eric _cackled_ as Illinois floundered for a moment, scrambling back to his feet. He was _covered_ in wet sand, and Eric couldn’t stop giggling. That is, until Illinois grabbed him and fell backwards, pulling them _both_ into the water, wrestling around in the shallow water.

That is, until they watched a _massive fucking snake_ slip into the water, and get almost _immediately_ bitten in half by _something_ they couldn’t see.

They slipped out of the water quickly, though they were still giggling, and Eric was shaking from the brief adrenaline rush of _fear_ as they watched that happen.

Eric sat in the sand, drying off in the desert heat, though it was pretty humid here by the water, as Illinois went off to hunt down a fruit tree or a smaller, less reptilian animal they could eat (though Eric wasn’t very fond of the idea of killing something). He laid on his back, staring up at the trees, and smiling happily. This trip had so far been more than he expected. He didn’t know _what_ he expected, but…this was _amazing_. Illinois was so sweet, and funny, and a little bit of a dork, and Eric _loved_ spending time with him, like this.

He heard the leaves rustling, and he beamed, sitting up and turning around. “Illi –”

He froze. A jackal was staring at him through the leaves, not moving. Eric was _afraid_ to move. He didn’t know what to do. Running was a bad idea. _Moving_ was probably a bad idea. He had nothing to defend himself, and Eric wasn’t exactly a big person. What was he going to do?!

The jackal cautiously took a step forward, then another, and another, slowly creeping forward. Eric was hyperventilating, eyes locked on the jackal, _terrified._ The leaved rustled again, and the jackal went rigid, head whipping towards the sound, just as Illinois was emerging from the depths of the oasis. “Hey Eric! I found –”

He cut himself off, swallowing hard, staring at the jackal as its lips curled up in a snarl. “Eric…you okay?”

“Fine!” Eric’s voice was high with panic. Illinois took a step forward, and Eric stifled a scream when the jackal – not _barked_ , but made a _sound_ , loud and _terrifying_.

“Don’t move, Eric! It’ll be okay!”

“You say that as if I was planning on it!”

Eric’s words were muffled by the ball he’d curled into, and Illinois huffed a laugh, slowly reaching for his whip. The jackal made that sound again, like a yell, and moved closer to Illinois. Eric didn’t want to watch, but he forced himself to, watched as Illinois got his whip off his belt. He moved fast, cracking it away from the animal – he didn’t want to _hurt_ it, after all, just scare it away. The jackal yelped, and ran off, and Eric breathed an _immense_ sigh of relief, flopping back on the sand. He felt a little light headed. Definitely didn’t feel _good_.

Illinois came over to sit beside him, coiling his whip back up to hook back on his belt. He dig through his satchel, pulling out at least a dozen peaches and oranges each. He smiled. “Dunno if you’re still hungry after that, but I found a whole bunch of fruit trees. I just grabbed what I could reach, and what looked ripe.”

Eric smiled back, pushing himself back upright to shyly kiss Illinois’ cheek, and he took an orange, peeling it open. They ate in slowly, talking quietly, and shifting back to face the lake, The corpse of that snake was gone, but its blood still tinted some of the water pink. Still, they didn’t let it bother them, eating and giggling and talking, and generally enjoying each other’s company.

Eventually though, Eric’s eyelids began to grow heavy, and he leaned against Illinois. He’d gotten up earlier than he was used to, and all the excitement and heat and humidity made him tired. He hummed, and Illinois wrapped an arm around his shoulders. “How about you take a nap, honey? Don’t worry, I’ll make sure no more jackals sneak up on you.”

Eric managed a little laugh, before he snuggled closer, closing his eyes. He fell asleep to the sound of birds, and Illinois humming a soft lullaby.


	3. Chapter 3

“Eric! _Eric Eric Eric_ , wake up! Come on, honey, wake up!”

Eric made a small, protesting noise, shifting and trying to push away whoever was shaking him. “ _Noo_ …”

There was a laugh, and Eric was slowly waking up despite how much he _did not_ want to. “Come on, Eric! It’s sundown, they should have the entrance to the tomb unburied by now!”

_That_ got Eric up, and he sat up sleepily, squinting through his sandy glasses at Illinois. “Mm…how long was I out?”

Illinois shrugged. “Oh, a couple hours at least. Now come on! I wanna be out of this oasis before night hits and we can’t see.”

Illinois helped Eric to his feet, and they slowly made their way back out of the oasis’ jungle, hand in hand. It took a good bit to find Amanda’s jeep again, and by then, the sun was just a tiny sliver of orange glow on the horizon. But Eric wasn’t looking at that.

He was looking at the _stars_.

He stared upwards, mouth agape, at the _billions_ of stars scattered across the sky. He always thought the view of the night sky was good from the manor, but it was _nothing_ compared to here in the desert. It was _beautiful_ , indescribably _gorgeous_ , and Eric couldn’t tear his eyes away as he climbed into the jeep.

As Illinois drove them back over to the dig cite, Eric kept his eyes on the sky, in revered _awe_ of the stars. He was dimly aware of Illinois chuckling lightly beside him, but Eric didn’t care. He was too focused on the _sky_.

He only tore his gaze away when Illinois parked the jeep, and Amanda was racing towards them, vibrating with as much excitement as Illinois had been beforehand. “You guys are _just_ in time! Everything’s cleared away, the entrance is lit up, we’re just waiting for you!”

Illinois squeaked, grinning broadly and flapping his hands again, and he practically jumped out of the jeep, sprinting towards the dig, Eric and Amanda hot on his heels. Illinois skidded to a halt, sending sand flying, as he stared at the tomb, looking just as awed as Eric had been at the sky. The doors were visible, sealed shut, the team of archeologists gathered around. Amanda came up beside him, hand resting against his back. “Care to do the honors?”

Illinois’ jaw _dropped_. “Are – are you serious?!”

Amanda nodded, and Illinois bounced on his feet, before carefully descending the rough wooden staircase that had been built to get to the entrance. The rope binding the doors together broke easily under his knife. He hesitated, glancing up at Eric, at Amanda, and the team, and pulled the doors open.

The tomb was dark. But, despite the shadows, Illinois could still see the outline of the sarcophagus in the middle. He bounced in place, rummaging around in his satchel, and pulled out a little flashlight. “Eric! Come here!”

Soon enough, Eric was by his side, and Illinois stepped into the tomb. He waved his flashlight around slowly, marveling the hieroglyphics on the walls, the pillars that supported the tomb, before he finally came before the sarcophagus. It was covered in dust and sand, and Illinois pulled a little brush out of satchel, gently wiping it away to see the old, fading paint on the sarcophagus.

“Wow…” Eric came up beside him, staring down at it with the same awe and reverence Illinois could feel. “…There’s really a mummy in there?”

Illinois nodded. “Should be. The seal was unbroken.”

Eric shuddered, wrapping his arms around himself. They heard footsteps, and then Amanda was coming up on Illinois’ other side, laying a hand on his arm. He subtly shrugged off her touch. Amanda pretended not to notice as she gasped, beaming. “Oh it’s _gorgeous!_ Hey! Can some get down here and start transcribing these hieroglyphics? We’ll open the sarcophagus tomorrow, when it’s light out! God this is _amazing!_ Hold on –”

She rushed back out, the chatter of crew reaching their ears, and Illinois tucked back away his brush and flashlight, wrapping one arm around Eric. “You know…” he mumbled. “We’re still in Egypt a couple more days. After we crack this open, what do you say to a more in-depth tour? Maybe I can charm my way closer to the pyramids.”

Illinois flashed one of his smiles, and Eric blushed furiously, pressing himself against Illinois. Still, he nodded, smiling back. “I’d like that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CUUUUUUUUUUUUUT CUTE CUTE CUTE  
> WEDNESDAY'S STORY IS ABOUT THE DEAR PIRATE CAPTAIN
> 
> Tumblr: doctordiscord123.tumblr.com


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